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System Failure: Sexual Victimization in Illinois Juvenile Prisons: 6/13/2013 by HuffPost Chicago; by John Maki, Executive Director of the John Howard Association of Illinois; In a recently released national study, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) found that Illinois ranked among the four worst states in the country for rates of reported sexual victimization in…
My View: Juvenile justice system broken, needs oversight: 6/13/2013 by Freeport (IL) Journal-Standard; by Elizabeth Clarke, President of the Juvenile Justice Initiative; Too often, it takes a crisis — and victims — to bring about a change.
In Illinois, a Season of Restorative Justice: 6/5/2013 by JJIE Resource Hub; by Judge George Timberlake; It has been a good spring for juvenile justice in Illinois. In a year of great fiscal challenge, the General Assembly approved Gov. Pat Quinn’s proposal to double funding for Redeploy Illinois,…
Taking a More Standard Approach: 6/3/2013 by National Juvenile Defender Center; by Rey Cheatham Banks and Sarah Bergen; The practice of juvenile defense is often an ad hoc system of representation with no definable structure, guidelines, or standards. Some states have a statewide system of defense, while others rely…
A Public-Private Partnership that Works: 5/23/2013 by Juvenile Law Center; by Autumn Dickman; Public-private partnerships are a staple of good government initiatives. Rarely, however, has such a partnership existed in juvenile justice on the scale of MacArthur Foundation’s…
Prevent crime by giving children the right start: 5/23/2013 by St. Louis Post-Dispatch; by St. Clair County (IL) State's Attorney Brendan Kelly; There is a growing consensus among law enforcement that we need to be doing much more on the front end to prevent crime on the back end. That’s why my office has created a Children’s…
Editorial: Fighting crime the smart way: 5/22/2013 by Chicago Sun-Times; As recently as three years ago, more than 1,300 young people were locked up in juvenile prisons in Illinois, costing the state a small fortune, from $88,000 to $98,000 per inmate. Now, thanks in…
Voice of the Reader: Redeploy Illinois needs support: 5/21/2013 by Southern Illinoisan (Carbondale); by Union County (IL) State's Attorney Tyler Edmonds; My law enforcement colleagues do a good job addressing juvenile crime and making sure offending juveniles are taken off the streets. But we continually arrest and prosecute the same kids and send…
One Case Makes the Case for Community Based Services: 5/8/2013 by Youth Today; by Judge George W. Timberlake, Ret.; CHICAGO -- The national debate continues over the issues of guns and violence, but attention to the subject of mental health services and funding must not be lost. We cannot miss the opportunity to…
Editorial: State can be a leader in juvenile justice: 5/7/2013 by Chicago Sun-Times; In 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that juveniles should not be sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole. But the court didn’t address two issues. What about juveniles who…
A New Hub for Juvenile Justice Research: 4/24/2013 by Juvenile Justice Resource Hub; by Juvenile Justice Information Exchange and the National Juvenile Justice Network; Juvenile justice professionals take note: a new resource launches this week that will make it easier—and more engaging—than ever to get in-depth journalism stories together with key…
Guest Editorial: Justice for all, including juveniles: 4/7/2013 by New Orleans Times Picayune; by Catherine 'Kitty' Kimball; I have spent the past two decades serving on the Louisiana Supreme Court. During that time, I have made juvenile justice reform a priority. For our youth to be properly served, we need to refocus…
Raise the Age; Don't Split the Difference: 4/3/2013 by Youth Today; by Judge George W. Timberlake, Ret.; The MacArthur Foundation's new "Mistakes Kids Make" Internet-based campaign is a welcome and innovative way to educate the public of the wisdom of giving kids an opportunity to straighten out their…
Editorial: Raise age for charging youths as adults: 3/25/2013 by Chicago Sun-Times; In Illinois, a 17-year-old goof caught shoplifting a $150 iPod Touch, a misdemeanor theft, is charged as a juvenile. If the same 17-year-old goof steals a $400 iPhone, a felony theft, he is charged…
We are the System: 3/6/2013 by Youth Today; by Judge George W. Timberlake, Ret.; Since the deadly shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School late last year, there has been an abundance of suggested policy changes to keep children safe. They include armed guards in every school…
Truancy Needs Early and Innovative Intervention: 2/20/2013 by Youth Today; by Judge George W. Timberlake, Ret.; Skipping school – perhaps that makes you think of adventures with high school friends just to test your independence. Four of my high school pals skipped school one beautiful spring day and…
Though controversial, prison reform a necessity: 2/10/2013 by Chicago Sun-Times; by Esther Franco-Payne; Every discussion of state government today revolves around the public pension funds stalemate, a crisis that has sucked the air out of the State Capitol. Yet, the wheels of state government keep…
A Rational Approach to School Safety and Student Performance: 2/5/2013 by Juvenile Justice Information Exchange; by Judge George W. Timberlake, Ret.; Debate is raging in communities across the country about the role of police in our nation’s schools. While the discussion is long overdue, too often the debate centers on the role and presence…
Screen to Save: Youth Assessment Conserves Resources and Improves Outcomes for Youth: 1/23/2013; by Gina Vincent and David Kindler; Screen to Save: Youth Assessment Conserves Resources and Improves Outcomes for Youth Youth “risk for re-offending” assessment tools can help juvenile justice systems to target resources…
Juvenile Justice Sees Progress: 12/27/2012 by The Advocate; by Justice Catherine Kimball; Juvenile justice sees progress Some good news about Louisiana’s success on the juvenile justice reform front was announced last week in the results of a nationwide study. While the news did…
Our View: In Louisiana, A Friend for Youth and a Model for Change: 12/23/2012 by The Town Talk, Alexandria; by Opinion; Louisiana knows only too well about the “school to prison” pipeline and the lifelong deleterious effects it has on young people who get run through it. Louisiana needs to know that…
For the Newly-Elected Judge, a Different View of Juvenile Court: 11/7/2012 by Youth Today; by Judge George W. Timberlake, Ret.; Dozens of lawyers won their first elections as judges this month, and they will soon experience the sensation of viewing the courtroom from the other side of the bench and hearing the words…
Don’t play politics: Close underused youth prisons: 10/28/2012 by Chicago Sun-Times; by Stephanie Kollmann; Voters are rightly disinclined to blame state workers for Illinois’ fiscal woes. Still, it’s hard to imagine the economic moment when taxpayers would be sympathetic to a union that…
llinois should close two juvenile prisons to save money: 9/3/2012 by St. Louis Post-Dispatch; by George W. Timberlake, Chair, Illinois Juvenle Justice Commission; With Gov. Pat Quinn and Illinois AFSCME locked in a protracted lawsuit over the governor's intention to close state prisons, the public debate often focuses on overcrowding in the state's adult…
Editorial: Justice for juveniles: 8/22/2012 by Chicago Sun-Times; Cook County’s juvenile justice center has made big strides in recent years. It’s cleaner and safer, its staff is more responsive and its school is more effective. But improvements…
STATE MUST CLOSE PRISONS AS NEED DECREASES: 6/10/2012 by Chicago Sun-Times; by Julie Biehl; Q. What happens when a state responds to non-violent juvenile delinquents with a justice system that holds them accountable for their actions and delivers family counseling, addiction treatment and…
Closing 2 Adult, Juvenile Prisons is the Right Move: 5/7/2012 by Chicago Sun-Times; by Paula Wolff; Despite a drop in crime and the need to close a multibillion-dollar budget hole, politics again threaten to derail plans to cut spending on prisons. Bowing to pressure by those opposed to closing…
Even Youths Who Offend Deserve Chance to Grow Up: 4/12/2012 by Chicago Sun-Times; by Joshua Sohn and the Rev. David Kelly; America stands alone among industrialized nations in telling children as young as 13 that they are beyond hope or redemption. More countries around the world impose sentences of caning, amputation or…
Don't put juveniles in jail for life: 3/19/2012 by CNN.com; by Laurence Steinberg; Laurence Steinberg is a professor of psychology at Temple University and former director of the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice. He is the author…
Teens change, given a chance: 3/19/2012 by Philadelphia Inquirer; by Edwin Desamour; I pick up a call on the hotline. It's one of several services the organization I cofounded provides for at-risk youths in my Philadelphia neighborhood. The kid on the other end of the of the line…
Editorial: Non-Violent Juveniles Should not be Locked Up: 1/3/2012 by Chicago Sun-Times; Illinois has long been a pioneer in juvenile justice, creating the nation’s first juvenile court as long ago as 1899. But in recent years, Illinois hasn’t looked so much like a pioneer…
Editorial: Time for an Intelligent Approach to Juvenile Justice: 12/14/2011 by The Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL); Imagine this line from a state report on young offenders and let it sink in for a moment:“The Illinois auditor general estimates that incarceration in (an Illinois Department of Juvenile…
Legislation is overdue to protect children's rights: 11/18/2011 by Patriot News; by Marsha Levick; Over the past 36 years, Juvenile Law Center has witnessed many horrific incidents involving children. Each time, the same questions arise – how could this happen and what can we do to make sure…
Editorial: Teen Alternatives to Jail Good for All: 10/28/2011 by Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL); It's not every day that a state legislature working to trim the budget could be making life much better for those on whom we traditionally have spent a lot of money. But that seems to be the case…
Editorial: Illinois Should Close at Least One Juvenile Prison: 10/25/2011 by The Pantagraph (Bloomington, IL); Unlike their adult counterparts, Illinois’ juvenile prisons — with one exception — are at or below capacity. The state has been successful in diverting young offenders to other…
Editorial: Prison isn’t Best Option for Nonviolent Youths: 10/14/2011 by Chicago Sun-Times; A debate over closing the Illinois Youth Center in Downstate Murphysboro has focused on jobs and money and pitted Gov. Pat Quinn against legislators and organized labor. But here’s something…
Looking for Savings, (Illinois Gov. Pat) Quinn Has a Good Idea: 10/2/2011 by New York Times; by James Warren; Locking up juvenile offenders isn’t working. What is working, both here and nationally, are community-based rehabilitation alternatives to punishment and isolation, notably with nonviolent…
Zero-Tolerance School-Discipline Policies are a Problem: 9/25/2011 by Seattle Times; by Jerry Large; People have a bad habit of overreacting to one problem and creating another in the process. Zero-tolerance school-discipline policies fall into that category. That's become increasingly clear in…
Editorial: State’s Lack of Efficiency is Costly: 9/18/2011 by Decatur Herald & Review; It makes sense to close at least one juvenile prison in Illinois, as Gov. Pat Quinn has recommended. That's unusual to hear, since there has been a lot of noise about how closing the seven…
Closing Juvenile Prison Makes Sense: 9/12/2011 by Rockford Register Star (Rockford, Illinois); by Elizabeth Clarke, President of the Juvenile Justice Initiative; Gov. Pat Quinn’s plan to close some state facilities to address budget shortfalls will put pressure on legislators to find new money to avoid the cuts, but one of the cuts — the closing…
Sex Offender Legislation is Often More About Politics than Justice: 9/1/2011 by Illinois Issues; by Jamey Dunn; Unless you spend time in the state Capitol, you would likely never imagine that lawmakers spend a good portion of their time debating a single issue: sex offenders. A cursory search of the General…
There are Better Alternatives to Youth Detention: 8/28/2011 by Patriot News; by Daniel P. Elby, CEO of Alternative Rehabilitation Communities; The Pennsylvania juvenile justice system is based on the philosophy of balanced and restorative justice. Implementing this philosophy ensures that each county dedicates equal attention to the…
Why Juvenile Offenders Need ‘Aftercare’: 8/25/2011 by Daily Herald; by George Timberlake; The heart-wrenching Daily Herald series recounting the 2008 attack on Elgin High School teacher Carolyn Gilbert has taken its readers to places few of us can imagine and where none of us want to…
Fighting Gangs Together: 8/25/2011 by Renton Reporter; by Justice Bobbe Bridge; Gang violence seems to be everywhere today, even right here in our own suburban neighborhoods – and it’s mobile, moving across city borders. So, how can South and East King County…
We Lost the Fight, Not the Battle, to Address Truancy: 8/23/2011 by Shreveport Times; by Angie White, Member of the Volunteers for Youth Justice Board of Directors; The Volunteers for Youth Justice (VYJ) Board of Directors recently made the difficult decision to end the ACT-Now Truancy Program. The program provided direct services to Caddo public schools in…
Editorial: Prison Not Only Choice for Justice: 8/17/2011 by The Alton Telegraph and The Jacksonville Courier-News (Illinois); The tough-love approach to juvenile justice undertaken in the 1980s and ‘90s was designed to send a message to frighten would-be young criminals. You get caught, you go to jail. To an extent…
Taxing and Spending, in Balance: 7/24/2011 by New York Times; by Robert J. Shiller; Economic View Taxing and Spending, in Balance By ROBERT J. SHILLER Published: July 23, 2011 The very term “fiscal stimulus” has become tainted. John Boehner, the House speaker, refers…
Save Truant Youth Before They Get to Court: 6/23/2011 by Seattle Times; by Bobbe Bridge; EARLIER this month, the Washington Supreme Court reversed an appeals court ruling that truant students must be represented by attorneys at the earliest stage of truancy hearings. Many of us from…
Statistics Don't Tell Total Child Abuse Story: 5/8/2011 by The Patriot-News; by Jeanette Krebs; Recently the state released its annual report on child abuse. As Gov. Tom Corbett wrote in one of the first pages, the number of cases of substantiated child abuse reports declined to 14.9 percent…
Transforming Juvenile Justice: Lawyers Making A Difference: 2/1/2011 by Illinois Bar Journal; by Mark Hassikis, President of the Illinois State Bar Association, and Lisa Jacobs, Illinois Models for Change; A look at three lawyers who are helping to create a more fair, effective, and rational juvenile justice system in Illinois, often by starting in their own communities. Last month's President's Page…
What if it Were Your Child?: 1/1/2011 by Illinois Bar Journal; by By Mark Hassikis, President of the Illinois State Bar Association, and Lisa Jacobs, Illinois Models for Change; What would the juvenile justice system look like if we knew our sons, daughters, and grandchildren would go through it? Remember the really stupid things you did as a teenager? If pressed, virtually…
Opinion: Young Offenders are Different: 8/27/2010 by The News-Star (Monroe, Louisiana); by Dana Kaplan; Currently in Louisiana there are 897 individuals behind bars for crimes committed as juveniles. Of these 897, almost half, 394, were prosecuted as adults, bypassing the juvenile justice system…
Editorial: Recommit to Serving Troubled Teens: 8/3/2010 by The Daily Herald; It's been nearly a year since a 16-year-old boy took his own life inside a state youth prison in St. Charles. Nearly a year to look at what went wrong. Nearly a year for change to happen. We've…
ISBA President Will Work on Juvenile Justice Reform: 7/22/2010 by Chicago Daily Law Bulletin; by Mark D. Hassakis; To the editor: The appointment last week of a new state juvenile justice chief — a veteran of the state's child welfare system — signals a new era in juvenile justice reform. Mr. Arthur…
Your Mail: Uniform Standards Coming: 7/14/2010 by The Alexandria Town Talk; by Louisiana State Representative Damon Baldone; During the recent session, the Legislature took a long-awaited -- and very necessary -- step toward juvenile justice reform. In collaboration with the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana and the…
Juvenile Justice Reform Works, at Lower Cost: 4/30/2010 by Tri-Parish Times; by Donald Cravins Jr.; Far too often, the newspaper arrives bearing news of yet another state budget hole. During the current legislative session, lawmakers will have to make decisions about — and deep cuts to…
Young Offenders Need Help -- Not Handcuffs: 4/15/2010 by Chicago Sun-Times; More than a few young people caught up in crime, when you get right down to it, suffer from a mental illness or are drug abusers. They may become hardened criminals some day, but they are more lost…
Taking Responsibility for Youth Justice: 4/12/2010 by Chicago Tribune; by Elizabeth Clarke, President, Juvenile Justice Initiative; Tribune readers should have been shocked to learn that more than 10 percent of the youths in state prisons have served their sentences but remain locked up because the state agency responsible for…
Effective Strategy on Juvenile Crime Has Southern Illinois Roots: 4/8/2010 by The Southern Illinoisan, Carbondale, Illinois; by The Southern Illinoisan; Our View: New approach to juvenile justice in Illinois is neither "soft" nor "tough" on crime. It looks at the whole juvenile and is "smart" on crime. When Chief Circuit Judge George Timberlake…
Kids Killing kids: 3/15/2010 by Chicago Tribune; The lost boys look crisp in T-shirts and desert-tan dungarees. The black letters that spill down one leg of each trousers, "IDOC," mark Bill Bigeck and Eddie Morfin as wards of the Illinois…
Scandals Highlight the Need for Juvenile Justice Reform: 3/4/2010 by Illinois Issues; by Jamey Dunn; Just a few months ago, it looked as if the scandal surrounding the “Meritorious Good Time Push” prisoner-release program could cost Gov. Pat Quinn a win in the primary election. Under the…
Kids Should Never Be Tried As Adults: 2/18/2010 by CNN; by Bob Schwartz; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- About 20 years ago, 9-year-old Cameron Kocher fired a rifle out of a window of his home in upstate Pennsylvania and hit his 7-year-old neighbor, who was riding on…
Reforming Juvenile Justice: 2/1/2010 by The New York Times; by Tracy Velázquez; To the Editor: Re “Seeking to Send Fewer Youths to Jail, City Shifts Strategy on Delinquency” (news article, Jan. 21): It’s past time for acknowledging that America’s…
Juvenile Law Center Strives for Justice Reform: 12/28/2009 by The Legal Intelligencer; by Robert Schwartz; The Juvenile Law Center's highly publicized work on behalf of thousands of Luzerne County teens is of obvious import. It also has its ironies. Since 2004, the Juvenile Law Center has been the "lead…
Keith Snyder Honored for Mental Health Reform Efforts: 12/20/2009 by Juvenile Court Judges' Commission Newsletter; by Marie Yeager; Keith Snyder, Deputy Director of the Juvenile Court Judges’ Commission, was honored by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation as a Champion for Change in juvenile justice reform for…
Saving young offenders is project's goal: 10/21/2009 by Sauk Valley Newspapers, Dixon and Sterling, Illinois; The criminal justice system in Ogle County is trying a new cooperative approach to discourage juvenile offenders from committing more crimes. The initiative is an effort by the Ogle County…
Focus on juvenile-justice reform: 6/19/2009 by Houman Today; by Catherine Kimball; The Louisiana Legislature is currently considering a number of measures that would change the way our juvenile justice system works. Some would change the way parole is addressed for juvenile…
Letter: For Youth, Second Chances: 4/15/2009 by New York Times; by Jonathan Fanton; To the Editor: “Missouri System Treats Juvenile Offenders With Lighter Hand” (news article, March 27) highlights the Missouri Model, which is just one of many promising reforms under way…
Essay: "Second Century" by Jonathan Fanton: 4/1/2009 by Illinois Issues; by Jonathan Fanton, President, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation; Illinois is in the vanguard of a national move to reform juvenile justice. This summer, the new Department of Juvenile Justice took charge of juvenile corrections in Illinois. This reform rested on…
Letter to the Editor: Juvenile justice changes needed: 3/2/2009 by Baton Rouge Advocate; by D.A. Schexnayder, child and adolescent psychiatrist; The juvenile justice system is getting well-deserved attention. In my 28 years as a child and adolescent psychiatrist, I have served as an expert witness, a member/chairman of the Jefferson Parish…
Untreated Mental Health Needs Fuels School to Jail Pipeline: 1/5/2009 by New York Times; by Joseph J. Cocozza, Ph.D.; Letter to the Editor NY Times RE: The Principal's Office First To The Editor: Thank you for drawing attention to the issue of increasing school arrests. Frequently, arrested youth have untreated…
Op-Ed: Illinois a national leader in juvenile justice reforms: 5/14/2008 by Peoria Star Journal; by Jonathan Fanton, President, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation; In 1899, Illinois established the nation's first juvenile court. The court was created with the enlightened goal of providing individual attention to young people in trouble with the law. The…
Op-Ed: Better Models for Juvenile Justice: 8/22/2007 by The Christian Science Monitor; by Rod R. Blagojevich, Kathleen Babineaux Blanco, Edward G. Rendell and Chris Gregoire; Springfield, Ill.; Baton Rouge, La.; Harrisburg, Pa.; and Olympia, Wash. Amid news stories that raise the specter of increasing juvenile crime, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that crime rates…

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